KSM has been opening for Mitchel Musso at various venues this summer. These five girls take the stage with an energetic and fun attitude, getting the entire venue pumped. Though the set is short, seeing as they are an opening act, it's still very upbeat and got the audience jumping and singing along to the cover of "I Want You To Want Me" originally done by Cheap Trick. One shouldn't be fooled by their appearance. Seeing five teenage girls take stage with instruments one would expect a pop sound, but that is not what these girls are bringing to the table. They have a more classic rock sound with powerful guitar chords and strong lead vocals. Everyone should certainly keep an eye on KSM.

To start out, can you introduce yourselves and what you do in the band?
- Kate Cabebe, 18 years old, drums.
- Shae Padilla, 18 years old, lead guitar.
- Sophia Melon, 18 years old, bass/vocals.
- Shelby Cobra, 16 years old, lead vocals.
- Katie Cecil, 16 years old, rhythm guitar/vocals.

Where did the name KSM come from?
All of our names start with either a K or an S, and the M is for music.

Did you ever take any kind of formal music or vocal lessons?
All of us have taken classes/lessons individually.

How did you decide that you wanted to be musicians as your careers?
Music has been our passion and our dream since we can remember. We feel really fortunate to actually be living our dream.

What would you say is your favorite memory from being on tour?
Every night that we perform is an amazing experience. Seeing people sing our words, rock out to our music, and bring us signs is awesome, and we love getting to meet them afterwards and hear their thoughts! There was one show where this teenage boy was getting SO into the music, throwing himself over the barricade while screaming the words to "Distracted". It was so amazing. :)

What's the best prank one of you has played while out on the road?
We love to prank. On the 2008 Tour of Gymnastics Superstars, we played the song "I'm Just a Girl" by No Doubt, and the gymnasts did a routine to it. On the last night of tour, we played "Umbrella" by Rihanna, which is a LOT slower than the No Doubt song, so they had to slow down their routine.

Do you have any rituals before going on stage to perform?
We have a few pre-show rituals. On a lucky day Kate will give an inspirational speech. We listen attentively. Then one of our managers burst out with tons of energy "What's today?" and we scream back, "The best day ever!" He retorts, "And what do we want?" and with building excitement we chant, "The best show ever!" Then we all stick out a 'rock on' hand into the middle of a huddle. We call this a rock star (when the five of us do it, it ironically makes our logo) and yell the inside choke of the day.

Where is your dream place to perform?
We think it would be really awesome to headline at the Staples Center! We're hoping that will happen one day.

Who are some artists or musicians that you look up to?
As a group, we are really inspired by powerful female artists of the past and present, such as the Go-Gos, the Bangles, Joan Jett, Pat Benatar, Pink, No Doubt, Paramore, Meg & Dia, etc. But individually, we vary in musical influences.

Do you have any advice for girls who aspire to be musicians?
Our advice to aspiring girl musicians is to not let anyone bring you down just because you are a girl. You can rock too, let's break the stereotype! Seize every opportunity, and make sure that you're in it for the music and because you love it. :)

How did you get to cover the song "I Want You To Want Me" by Cheap Trick?
ABC Family has a new show called 10 Things I Hate About You, (yes, based on the movie with Heath!) and in the movie the band Letters to Cleo covers the song "I Want You to Want Me" by Cheap Trick; performs it on a rooftop and whatnot. Basically we're doing the same thing with the show, and we love being a part of it! The show is great and I Want You to Want Me was already one of our favorite songs, so it's really cool we got to cover it.

What was your reaction the first time you heard yourselves on the radio?
Shelby and I were in the car, talking about camping I believe, when all of a sudden Shelby starts SCREAMING. Shelby's mom and I were so confused, we thought we were about to hit something. Turns out, Distracted was on the radio. It was so cool! We rolled down the windows, blasted it and sang along.

Anything you'd like to say to your fans at Musiqtone.com?
We'd like to say thank you so much for all of your support, it means a lot to us! Don't forget that our album comes out September 22nd, make
sure you get a copy. We love you and couldn't be doing this without you. :)


Spencer Abbott is a II assistant regional head in the Midwest region at Musiqtone. You can reach her at spencerabbott@musiqtone.com.




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